> Dubbed GW170608, the latest discovery was produced by the merger of two relatively light black holes, 7 and 12 times the mass of the sun, at a distance of about a billion light-years from Earth. The merger left behind a final black hole 18 times the mass of the sun, meaning that energy equivalent to about 1 solar mass was emitted as gravitational waves during the collision.<p>I wonder if one would experience any macroscopic effects from the gravitational waves if one were close enough to the black holes during the merger. Or would one have to be so close that tidal effects from the black holes' gravity would mask any of those effects?<p>I ask because one solar mass worth of energy sounds like ... a lot. At least to me as an astronomical layperson.